Sunday, March 16, 2014

Further and Closer

“Karan,
don’t worry sweetheart, you’ll be fine. The doctors are here and they won’t let
anything happen to you,” Aashna said as tears fell down her cheeks.

I
could hear someone speaking to me, but it was all a blur. There was a weird
haze around me which blurred everything except her. There she was. My fairy, my
angel sent by the Lord to protect me. Tears glistened on her cheeks and I tried
wiping them away, but my hands felt as though they were made of lead.

“I’m
sorry, I couldn’t keep my promise,” I strained in a feeble voice.

“Karan,
it’s all right. Nothing’s going to happen to you.”

“I’m
sorry Aash…Aashna. Tell our…our Sunain that I love her very much, and that I
will miss her.”

“You
tell her yourself you idiot. You’re coming home with me in an hour, understood?
And yes, I’m angry with you, especially for breaking that promise you’d made
me,” said Aashna, feigning anger, as she broke down and clutched my hand
closely to her heart.

“Please
be normal Karan, please…I beg you,” she went on as a steady flow of tears began
falling down my cheeks. The approaching darkness was just punctuated by her
words, which gave way to a new light at the center, and I remembered the
promise I had made to her.

“You
are such a moron Karan! I didn’t expect this from you! Not at all!”

The
shrieks echoed in my ears as I stood in front of the mirror. There in the
backdrop stood my ready rucksack all set to travel to Delhi. Freshly out of
engineering school, I was looking forward to my first job, and here I was on
the eve of the day it all came together. Trying to compose myself, I slumped
onto the sofa, and breathed out loud.

“She
doesn’t want me near her, but I can’t manage to stay from her. When I asked her
that day after the placements, she just shouted back at me and told me to get
away. I wasn’t worth she said,” I mumbled to myself and swore rather badly
while my hand punched the sofa hard.

“She
doesn’t want you near her Karan, so just let her be. Concentrate on your job
and don’t think about her at all. She just craves the attention you give her.
No, she chose London ‘cause my initial plan was to go there. Then due to that
fight we had, I chose Delhi…Karan, she’s just your best friend. You’ll get
another one just like her soon. Now get your bag and start moving.

“She
stood by you in your worse and now that things are good, you are running away
from her. You seriously are the best
friend anyone would want. She always cares for you and doesn’t allow anything
to happen to you as well, but still there are the fights,” I kept mumbling in
my head, trying to figure a way out.

“Son,
are you ready to leave? The car’s running, and I think if you delay yourself
for even a minute, your mom’s going to come marching up the stairs.”

“Yeah
dad, I’m just coming in a minute,” I said, looking up with a watery smile.

“Any
trouble?”

“No,
I’m doing great.”

“By
the way, is Aashna coming to see you at the airport? Where did she get placed?”

“Huh,
what? Uhm no, she isn’t coming. She’s got placed in London, and I think her
flight leaves at the same time as mine.”

“You’ll
aren’t meeting today, are you?”

“Hmm…”

“We’re
early enough. I’ll have your mother call Aashna up to tell her that you’re
coming to meet her now. The domestic terminal isn’t far from the international
one, so we’ll make it to your flight in time.”

“Dad,
we’ll get late. I’ll call her up later from the plane.”

“What’s
up with you two? Problems?”

“Kinda
yes. We’ll be back to normal soon. Our fights don’t last long.”

“This
fight’s going to take you both miles apart, literally. And she’s a good girl
son, don’t ever lose her.”

Turning
to leave, he went on, “She fights with you just because she cares. And I know
you feel the same for her. Just don’t let her go.”

“She
doesn’t love me dad. I asked her already.”

“Asking
is very different from proposing. There’s a small red box in my bedside drawer.
Just get it for me, will you? I’m heading down and telling your mother to make
the call, come fast.”

“Thanks
dad, I’ll just be a minute.”

With
a look in the mirror, I muttered to myself, “You love her Karan, and now you
need to get her.”

Hitching
the rucksack on my back, I walked out of the room and ran to grab the box my
dad had told me to fetch. Rushing into to the waiting car, I panted, “Sorry for
the delay.”

“It’s
fine Karan. Anyways I think it’s the last time you’re going to be late. Aashna
will surely bash you up if do such a thing in the future,” my mother said with
a twinkle in her eye.

“Mom,
there’s nothing between us. And I reckon she would bash me up if she heard you
say that as well.”

“Oh,
you’ll have already reached that stage! Great!”

I
kept quiet and just looked up at the stars high above, as my stomach groaned
with the uncommon mixture of nervousness and happiness.

“Which
Airline is she going by?”

“She’s
going by British Airways.”

“We
had gone by Etihad, hadn’t we?” I still remember the food and the wonderful
seating.”

“We’d
gone by British Airways itself mum. I was the one who recommended British
Airways to Aashna. British Airways has always been the best in this business,
so I didn’t think of anything else.”

“I
don’t care what they have done. I just noticed that you have been doing all her
planning work too. Does she know to cook? Now I get it, that friend who cooked
for you there was Aashna! Oh my God! Why didn’t I see it before!”

I
just glared at my mother as she laughed happily from the front seat.

As
we reached the airport, I spotted her waiting alone at the entrance, her eyes
surfing the crowd for a familiar face. I got down from the car without waiting
for it to halt and ran to her, unable to hold on for a single extra moment.

“Hi
Karan. What are you doing here? You haven’t forgotten you have a flight, have
you?”

“I
wanted to tell you something so I came. I guess I’ll make it in time to the
airport if you don’t have anything to reply to me.”

“Talk
fast; I have to clear security in 10 minutes.”

Taking
her to a side, I began.

“I
am extremely sorry for turning up here like this. This is impromptu, so I
really don’t know how to go on. And I haven’t done something like this ever so
I don’t have any experience as well.”

“Karan!
Fast!”

“I
love you very much and I want to marry you, so will you do it,” I asked at a
pace comparable to that of a fired rifle round.

“I
am going to hit you on the head unless you talk sense within the next 10
seconds.”

“This
is what the world has come to. And if Rahul Gandhi keeps on talking his women
empowerment stuff anymore, the world will soon be devoid of men and the jails
will be filled with women. I just want to tell you before you go that I will
follow you everywhere you go to make sure that you are happy and fine. I will
never leave your hand and I will be with you wherever may you be.”

“So
you’ve asked for a transfer to London even before attending a single day at
office?”

“Are
you crazy? I just made a promise to stay as close as I can to you, and to accompany
you as far as you go. I just proposed to you like that and you are…”

“I
told you that day, didn’t I?”

“That
day was that day Aashna. And at that
time I wasn’t sure myself. But now, I am. I am ready to stand with you forever,
and I will follow you everywhere, with or without your consent.”

“You
have seriously gone mad. And by the way, I thought you would have said this
differently considering I have told you all that I want from life.”

“I
have a ring as well; I didn’t forget that at least. Well, my dad reminded me.
And I’m not doing that knee thing at any cost. Meeting my future in-laws in
dirty clothes seems so weird. I’ll propose like that later on if you want.”

“You
really sure you want to hitch me? I’m really troublesome, and what about our fights?”

“We’ll
manage somehow; that’s what we have done for so many years. Now stop playing
with me, just go and sit in the car with my mum and dad. I’ll cancel our
tickets and come.”

“Karan,
our jobs! We can’t lose them already!”

“You
don’t need to work till the wedding at least. After that it’s your choice. I
hadn’t liked the offer I’d got anyways. I’ll just go about completing that book
I started. If that works, then maybe you won’t need to work at all.”

“Don’t
tell me that you’re going to manage the house and also the cooking part. God
knows how I’ll survive with that food you make.”

“It’s
not that horrible, is it?”

Aashna
just looked at me with the hint of a laugh in her eyes.

“Don’t
tell anyone about the promise I made to you, especially mom. I don’t want
anyone to know about it.”

“I
still can’t believe you said that, you know? Can you say it once again?”

“I’ll
follow you everywhere you go, just to stay close with you.”

The
scene slipped out of focus and the darkness returned. The light was hazier than
before, but now there was the sound of siren playing in the background. With
humungous effort, I forced my eyes open and looking at my wife, my love, I
tried to apologize.

In
reply, she just said, “I’m coming with you wherever you go. You made me a
promise on that day, and now I’m telling you this. I love you Karan, I always
will.”

2
years later

“Bye
Sunain dear, come soon.”

“Bye
dad.”

There
she smiled at me, from the picture which hung on the wall. Aashna. Her whole
life had gone in caring for me and in helping me achieve my dreams, and I
hadn’t been able to do anything for her, ever. Even when I had been a
centimeter away from death with my heart almost destroyed, she had helped.
Again and again, she kept doing it for me, and that smile of hers never left
its place.

She
wasn’t far from me now, she was really close, very close, and I would stop
living only when she did. She was now my heart, and literally.